Clark was born in Durban, South Africa. He took up golf at the age of three and was taught to play by his father. He attended North Carolina State University in the United States, where he had a successful college golf career, winning ACC Player of the Year in 1997. During this time he won the 1997 U.S. Amateur Public Links to qualify for his first Major, the 1998 Masters Tournament.
He turned professional later in 1998, and initially played on the Nike Tour, where he won two tournaments in 2000 to gain membership of the PGA Tour for 2001.
In May 2010, Clark, after eight runner-up finishes and 206 starts, picked up his first PGA Tour title: the 2010 Players Championship. Clark came from three behind with a final round 67 to win by a stroke over Australian Robert Allenby.
